Guryul Ravine Fossil Site

Guryul Ravine Fossil Site Latest news

The Geological Survey of India (GSI) has issued a stark warning to the Jammu and Kashmir administration over a “serious threat” to the important Guryul Ravine fossil site in Khonmoh, on the outskirts of Srinagar.

About Guryul Ravine Fossil Site

• Location: The Guryul Ravines is located in Kashmir, geologically known as the Vihi district.
• It consists of a repository of fossils that hold evidence of the Permian–Triassic extinction event, dating as far as back 260 million years.
• These preserve clear evidence of the catastrophic Permian–Triassic mass extinction, which wiped nearly all life on Earth.
• It also hosts what geologists believe is the world’s first-ever recorded tsunami event, its imprint still visible in the exposed rock layers.
• The site lies near Dachigam National Park and falls within the sensitive Khonmoh Conservation Reserve area.

What is the Permian–Triassic Extinction Event?

• It is also known as the End-Permian Extinction or, colloquially, the ‘Great Dying’.
• The Permian-Triassic extinction event marked the boundaries between the Permian and Triassic geological periods, as well as between the Paleozoic and Mesozoic eras approximately 251.9 million years ago.
• It was one of the major extinction events that the planet ever saw, when biodiversity decreased rapidly and across wide stretches. 

Source: DH

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